I've finally found a way to pull region and phone model locked Japanese games from the Android market, such as the new Shiren game by Chunsoft. I'm posting the instructions here so no other poor fucker ever has to go through figuring this out.
Basically speaking, these games are locked by both SIM region and firmware information. Companies like NTT DoCoMo offer a select group of handsets with their service, and these handsets have firmware that has been heavily hacked on the inside to brand it as such. In order to get such a locked game, whether free or for sale, onto your phone, you will need to make Android Market think you are running an NTT branded handset.
To do this, you will need the following:
- A rooted Android phone
- RootExplorer
- Superuser
- Market Access - this app is ad free and can run at boot
- A barcode reader that can handle QR codes
1. Run RootExplorer and navigate to /system. Click the button to remount as r+w.
2. Long press on build.prop and select Copy. Paste it into the same folder or another folder to make a backup. You DO NOT want to lose this.
3. Long press on build.prop and select Edit in Text Editor.
4. Find and modify the following values (jacked from an NTT DoCoMo SHARP SH12C). Be aware they may not be grouped logically, so search the whole file if need bed. If a value doesn't exist, you will need to create it:
2. Long press on build.prop and select Copy. Paste it into the same folder or another folder to make a backup. You DO NOT want to lose this.
3. Long press on build.prop and select Edit in Text Editor.
4. Find and modify the following values (jacked from an NTT DoCoMo SHARP SH12C). Be aware they may not be grouped logically, so search the whole file if need bed. If a value doesn't exist, you will need to create it:
ro.build.id=S7140
ro.build.display.id=01.01.02
ro.build.version.incremental=01.01.01
ro.build.version.release=2.3.3
ro.product.model=SH-12C
ro.product.brand=DOCOMO
ro.product.name=SH12C
ro.product.device=SH12C
ro.product.board=SH12C
ro.product.manufacturer=SHARP
ro.product.locale.language=ja
ro.product.locale.region=JP
ro.mtp.manufacturer=NTT DOCOMO, Inc.
ro.sh_build.id=S7301
ro.sh_build.version.incremental=01.01.02
ro.build.product=SH12C
ro.build.description=SH12C-user 2.3.3 S7140 01.01.01 release-keys
ro.build.fingerprint=DOCOMO/SH12C/SH12C:2.3.3/S7140/01.01.01:user/release-keys
With it, I was actually able to purchase and install locked apps. In theory, if you have a tool like TitaniumBackup that converts installed apps to APK files, you could purchase an app, convert it to APK, then use the 15-minute return to get your money back. I have not done this because I don't want this kind of purchase pattern on my credit card, and because I'm willing to give Chunsoft 500 yen because that's a very fair price for Shiren.
5. Close Root Explorer.
6. Open System->Applications->All and scroll down to Market. Click Force Close and Clear Cache.
7. Power off your phone. You absolutely must reboot your phone in order to populate the new values we just made in the RAM.
8. Run MarketEnabler. Click the third tab and enter this for your SIM code: 44010. All NTT network SIM cards are branded 0xABEA.
8a. Go to System->Accounts & Sync and add a NEW GOOGLE ACCOUNT. One that has never been tied to any phone. Create one if you must.
9. Copy the URL of the program in the market and go to kaywa.com. Paste it in and generate a QR code.
10. Take a picture of the QR code with your barcode scanner. When prompted, pick to use Market to open the link.
10a. Immediately click the menu button and change your account to the new Google account you added to your phone.
11. Agree to the Market terms and conditions.
12. Congratulations! You can finally install the fucking game!
NOTE: I was finally able to isolate a strange bug in that your current Google count does not notify Google that it is present on a new device. Apparently, your phone information is only sent to Google when an account is first tied to your phone. If you wish to purchase apps in the market with the account you've added, you will need to use that account to log in. Make sure your Market app is also set to that account so automated downloading can begin.
